PORTLAND – The Portland State Women's Soccer team is set to take on Western Oregon and Gonzaga in a pair of non-conference matches this weekend. The Vikings will travel to Monmouth on Friday to take on the Wolves (2 PM) before returning home to battle the Bulldogs at Hillsboro Stadium on Sunday (1 PM).

LAST TIME OUT

The Vikings put up a fight against a strong Seattle team in their season opener on Saturday. Despite falling 2-0, PSU fired off eight shots, three of those on goal while giving up just one goal in the opening 80 minutes of play.
 

VIKING DEFENSE

Starting goalkeeper Enya Hernandez had an active day on Saturday, facing eighteen shots during her 90 minutes in goal against Seattle. The Junior tallied six saves, four of those coming in the second period. Leading the defensive attack was redshirt senior Liz Hansen who clocked 90 minutes of action against the Redhawks. The Vikings held the Redhawks to just a single corner kick during the contest.

VIKING OFFENSE

Six different Vikings recorded a shot attempt in the season opener. Sophomore Ani Jensen led the group with a career-high three shots, putting one of those on goal. Also adding to the total were Sienna Higinbotham, Natalia Blanco, Abi Hoffman, Raniyah Burton, and Jadyn Harris. The Vikings' offense saw most of their success come in the second period, recording five of their eight shots during the final 45 minutes of action. For the first time since 2019, the Vikings totaled more corner kicks than their opponent, recording two in the contest.

WESTERN OREGON 

Friday, August 27 | 2 P.M. | Monmouth, Ore.

While Friday is a regular-season matchup for PSU, It will count as an exhibition for the Wolves. It will be their second of the season, their first coming on Tuesday against Linfield.

In her second season at the helm in 2020, WOU head coach Kelsey Bingham compiled a 3-7 record. She enters her third season with the Wolves carrying a young roster consisting of 19 freshmen.

The Vikings will look to extend their all-time series lead (3-2-0) over the Wolves on Friday. PSU has won three consecutive matches against WOU, the last victory coming in 2010 (3-0).

GONZAGA 

Sunday, August 29 | 1 P.M. | Hillsboro, Ore.

Portland State trails the all-time series against the Bulldogs 3-11-3. PSU fell in the last meeting 1-2 in 2017.  

The Bulldogs hold a 2-0 record following a pair of wins against Eastern Washington and Georgia to open the season. They will take on Purdue on Thursday before arriving in Portland.

Gonzaga has scored seven goals in two matches. A young duo in Kate Doyle and Kelsey Olyer lead the offense with five points each. The Bulldogs are looking to improve a 7-3-1 record from the 2020 season.